Britain’s David Coulthard Wins Race of Champions 2018 in Riyadh

Norway’s Petter Solberg comes in second in the key race of the first-ever international motor sport event held in the Kingdom

RIYADH, February 3 (CIC) – David Coulthard of Britain, a former Formula 1 driver, raced to victory on Saturday in the Race of Champions (ROC) 2018 in Riyadh, the first-ever international motor sporting event to be held in Saudi Arabia.

The Scottish Coulthard, a former Champion of Champions, bested Norway’s Petter Solberg, a former World Rally champion, in the individual race of the 29th edition of ROC, held at King Fahd International Stadium in the Saudi capital.

“David Coulthard from Scotland gets the title of the Race of Champions 2018,” the Saudi General Sports Authority (GSA) announced on its official website.

On Friday, the ROC’s Nations Cup went to Team Germany — Rene Rast and Timo Bernhard — after beating Team Latin America comprising Juan Pablo Montoya, the Colombian Formula One star, and Helio Castroneves of Brazil, the three-time Indy 500 champion, the Saudi General Sports Authority (GSA) announced.

It was the first time the Race of Champions was held in the Middle East region. The international motor racing championship race in Riyadh was the result of an agreement signed in London by the GSA president Turki Al-Sheikh and ROC organiser Frederik Johnson. It represents an important step toward the Kingdom’s goal of regularly hosting top-tier international sporting championships of all types.

Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal, Deputy Chairman of GSA, handed the cups to Coulthard and Solberg at the end of the race on Saturday. Prince Khaled bin Sultan Al Faisal, Chairman of the Saudi Arabian Motor Federation, also attended the race events on Friday and Saturday, which brought together some of the biggest names of the international racing world to the tarmac in Riyadh.

A total of 24 drivers took part in the races. The participants included Yazid Al Rajhi and Ahmed bin Khnein, both of Saudi Arabia; Indianapolis 500 winner, Ryan Hunter-Reay of the US; World’s Fastest Gamer 2017, Norwegian Rudy Van Buren in his first real-life race; Denmark’s Tom Kirstensen; Khalid Al Qubaisi and Khalid Al Qassimi from the UAE, and Carl Massad and Mansour Shibli from Lebanon.

For the inaugural weekend, the General Sports Authority joined forces with the Saudi Arabian Motor Federation and the Saudi Federation for Mass Participation to pack the spectator experience with a variety of activities both inside and around the perimeter of King Fahd International Stadium, with a special emphasis on family activities.